Automatic gate for railway-crossings



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

W. H. BISHOP. AUTOMATIC GATE FOR RAILWAY OROSSINGS. No, 370,117. Pate ept. 20, 1887.

(' Va, 11 0 L (No Model.) 4 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

W. H. BISHOP.

. AUTOMATIC GATE FOB. RAILWAY GROSSINGS. No. 370,117. Patented Sept. 20, 1887.

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NITED STATES PATENT Fries.

WILLIAM H. BISHOP, OF NEWV HAVEN, CONNECTICUT.

AUTOMATIC GATE FOR RAILWAY-CROSSINGS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 370,117, dated September 20, 1887.

Application filed June 16, 1887. Serial No. 241,474.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, WVILLIAM H. BISHOP, residing at New Haven, in the county of New Haven and State of Connecticut, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Automatic Gates for Railway-Crossings; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had'to the accompanying drawings,which form a part of this specification.

My invention relates to an improvement in automatic railway-gates, the object being to provide an apparatus of simple, reliable, and cheap construction, built entirely above ground for case of access for attention and repair and to avoid the dangers resulting from the accu- 'mulation of water and ice in underground chambers.

XVith these ends in view my invention consists in an apparatus having certain details of construction and combination of parts, as will be hereinafter described, and pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a view in side elevation of one form which apparatus embodying my invention may assume. Fig. 2 is a plan view thereof. Fig. 3 is a broken View in side elevation embraced by the lines a b of Fig. 2 and looking toward the single gate. Fig. 4 is a View in end elevation, showing the automatic lock; and Fig. 5 is adetached view in elevation of one of the shafts U.

As herein shown, the invention is applied to the protection of the crossing A of a single track, B. Posts 0 and D are located on one side of the track and at opposite ends of the crossing, and posts E and F occupy similar positions on the other side of the track. Vertically-operating double gates G and H, respectively pivoted to the posts C and D near the lower ends of the same, are adapted in length to come together when depressed and bar one approach to the crossing. A vertically-operating single gate, J, pivoted to the post E, bars, when depressed, the approach to the crossing from the other side. Each gate is provided upon its inner face with an open frame, I, as shown. A long inclined gate-rod, K, having its inner end connected with the frame of the gate G, so as to play freely therein, is supported with a capacity for endwise play in a (No model.)

bearing, L, mounted upon the inner face of a post, M, located in line with the post C and connected with the same by a cross-piece, N. Au inclined gate-rod, O, similarly connected 5 with the frame of the gate H, is supported in a similar bearing, P, mounted upon the inner face of a post, Q, located in line with the post D and connected therewith by a ci'osspiece, R. Another inclined gate-rod, S, connected with the frame of the gate J, is supported in a bearing, T, mounted upon the inner face of a post, U, located in line with the post Eand connected therewith by a cross-piece,V. Each of the said inclined rods is provided upon its 6 inner face with an open frame, IV, running parallel with it. Gate-cranks X X, respectively coupled with the rods K and Sby means of the frames XV, through which they have endwise play, are rigidly connected at their upper ends with a horizontal rock-shaft, Y, having bearings in the upper ends of the posts C and E and provided at its opposite ends with arms Z Z, carrying Weights A A, partly counterpoising the gates G and H, the excess of 7 weight being in favor of opening them.

The rod 0 is connected through its frame WV with a crank, B, having endwise play in such frame and rigidly secured at its upper end to a horizontal shaft, C, mounted in the upper ends of the posts D and F, and provided at one end with an arm, D, carrying a counterweight, E, for the gate H, which it lifts when the apparatus is unlocked. An operating-crank having arms F and G is rigidly 8 secured to the shaft Y and arranged to stand vertical normally, or when the gates are open. An operating-crank having a single arm, H, is similarly arranged upon the corresponding end of the shaft C, before mentioned. Acoupler, I, connecting the outer ends of the arms G and H, couples the two horizontal rockshafts Y and C, and hence their connections. The upper end of the arm F is connected by a cable, J, with the upper end of a lever, K, 9 fulcrumed upon a post or standard, L, located in line with the posts C and M and connected therewith and stayed by frame work consisting of the pieces M, N, and O, as shown. The lower end of the said lever K is con nected with a rod, P, supported by and having free endwise movement in a bearing, Q,

attached to an upright, R, located in line with the standard L, before mentioned. This rod carries an arm, S, which is engaged by the upright arm T of a rock-shaft, U, extending .U and the tread-levers V V to their normal positions after their effective or idle operation by the engine-wheels, the said cable running over a. pulley, Z, mounted upon a post, A, located between the standard L and the up right R, before described. The upper end of the arm H is connected by a cable, B, with the upper end ofalever, G pivoted to astandard, D located in line with the posts D- and Q and connected therewith and stayed by frame-pieces E F, and G. To the lower end of this lever (3 is connected a rod, H, supported by and having endwise play in a bearing, J mounted upon an upright, K", located in line with the standard D This rod carries an arm, L", arranged to be engaged by an upright arm, M, carried bya shaft, N, extending under the track and carrying tread-levers O 0 located adjacent to the rails W" W in position to be engaged and depressed bythe engine-wheels. I

The upper end of the arm M is connected by a short cable, P with a weight, Q provided for turning the shaft and restoring the arm M and the tread-levers O O to their normal positions after the idle or effective depression of the latter by the engine-wheels, the said cable running over a pulley, R located upon a post, S", situated between the standards D and K The gates are temporarily locked in their closed positions by a locking-plate, T fulcrumed upon the post U transversely to the gate-rod S, and arranged so that when the gate J is depressed, and the rod S, connected with it, is retracted in its bearingT, the outer end ofsuch rod will be brought in line with the inner end of the locking-plate T with which it will be engaged forthwith by the counterweights tending to open the gates. gagement described is broken for the opening of the gates by an upright lever,U,pivoted to the outer end of theplate and connected at its lower end with a horizontal tread-lever,V embracing one of the rails W, so as to be depressed by the wheels of the engine, the weight of the lever U operating to raise the treadlever V into position again after the train has passed.

Having set forth the construction of my improved apparatus, I will now proceed to describe its operation. ,Let it be assumed that all the gates are raised for the free use of the crossing and'that a train is coming in the direction of the arrow a, which direction I will The encall up the track. Before the engine reaches the crossing its forward wheels will strike the tread-leversV V and depress them, and thus rotate the shaft U, the arm T of which will be moved against the arm S of the rod 1?, which will be moved and communicate its motion to the lever K, operating through the cable J and the operating-crank G to turn the shaft Y against the counterweights and depress the gates G and J. The described rotation of the shaft Y is communicated by the coupler I to the shaft 0, which is turned and the gate H depressed against its counter-weight E. The gates being depressed are locked in that position by the engagement of the outer end'of the gate-rod S with the locking-plate T, which temporarily holds all of the gates depressed or closed, whereby the crossing is protected in both of its approaches. Before the engine reaches the crossing, however, its wheels engage with the tread-lever V and depress the same, whereby the lockingplate Tis moved and the rod S released, thisbeing followed by the opening of all the gates under the influence of the weights. When the engine reaches the levers O '0" down the track, it depresses the same without other effect, and they are at once restored to their normal positions of elevation by the weight Q, the train passing on leaving the gates open after having both closed and opened them. Let it be assumed again that the gates are open and that a train is coming down the track. Then the engine-wheels will strike the levers O O and effect the closing of the gates and the locking of them in that position. Then after it leaves the crossing its wheels engage with the lever V and unlock the gates, which are at onceopened; As it passes on it will engage with the levers V Vand depress them, but without other effect, and they will be at once restored to their normal positions of readiness to be effectively operated by a train coming in the direction of the arro'wa bythe'weig-ht Y. It will thus be seen that the gates are automatically opened and closed by the trains.

By coupling the tread-levers located up and down the track by mechanism extending over the crossing, the complications and inconveniences of underground couplings are avoided, together with the dangers to which the same are exposed by the accumulation and freezing of water in the pits or underground chambers. The improved device herein shown and described is also especially recommended by its convenience of attention and repair.

It is apparent that .by extending the horizontal rock-shafts and duplicating the treadlevers my apparatus may be made to cover any number of parallel tracks.

cut that either double or single gates may be used on each side of the track, and that the specified mechanism herein shown may be variously modified in carrying out my invention, which may be adapted to operating the gates of elevated railways. I would therefore have it understood that I do not limit myself It is also apparto the exact construction shown and described, but hold myself at liberty to make such changes and alterations as fairly fall within the spirit and scope of my invention.

Having fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In automatic railway-gates, the combination, with two or more pivotal vertically-opcrating gates, of two rock-shafts supported in frame-work above the crossing, gate-cranks carried by the rock-shafts, a coupling for such shafts, tread-levers located up and down the track and arranged to be operated by the engine-wheels, and connections between the said tread-levers, rock-shafts, and gates, substantially as set forth.

2. In automaticrailway-gates, the combination, with two or more gates, of two rockshafts supported in elevated framework over the crossing, operating-cranks carried by the shafts, a coupling for the shafts, tread-levers for operation by the train-wheels, located up and down the track, connections between the tread-levers and the rock-shafts, locking mechanism for holding the gates closed, and a treadlever connected with such mechanism for unlocking the gates, substantially as set forth.

3. In automatic railway-gates, the combination, with two or more pivotal vertically-operating gates,oftworock-shafts mounted inframework elevated above the crossing and each provided with an operating-crank and a counter-weight, gate -cranks carried by the said shafts, gate-rods pivoted to the gates and flexibly connected with the gate-cranks, elevated supports for such rods, tread-levers arranged for operation by the engine-wheels and located up and down the track, and connections be tween such levers and the rock-shafts, substantially as set forth.

4. In automatic railway-gates, the combination, with two or more pivotal vertically-operating gates, of two rockshafts mounted in frame-work elevated above the crossing and each provided with an operating-crank, a gate counter-weight, and a gate crank, gate-rods pivoted to the gates and flexibly connected with the gate-cranks, a coupler connecting cranks of the respective shafts, tread-levers arranged to be operated by the engine-wheels located up and down the track, connections between such levers and the rock-shafts, and means for restoring the tread-levers to their operative positions after the effective or idle operation by the engine-wheels, substantially as set forth.

5. In automatic railway-gates, the combination, with two pivotal vertically-operating gates, of two rock-shafts supported in elevated frame-work above the crossing and each provided with a gate-crank, gate-rods pivoted to the gates and flexibly connected with the gatecranks, a coupler coupling the respective rockshafts, tread-levers arranged to be operated by the engine-wheels, located up and down the track, connections between such levers and the rock-shafts, alocking-plate arranged to be engaged by one of the gate-rods for holding the gates closed, a tread-lever, and connection between the same and the said locking-plate, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I have signed this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

\VILLIAM H. BISHOP.

\Vitnesses:

CHAS. B. SHUMWAY, WILLIAM J. LUM. 

